The Christmas Party
by silversurf4
Summary: A little overtime at the holidays leads to sweet moments between Crews & Reese. Fluff, thoroughly and completely.
1. Chapter 1 Volunteered

**Christmas Party**

**Volunteers….**

The Governor was hosting an event at the Los Angeles Hilton for Christmas. Based on the approved vacations of Detectives with families, the roster was fairly lean, so with the Department actively seeking undercover or plainclothes officers that could blend in at the event, both Crews and Reese were high on that list. Add to that the fact that neither of them had plans and they were perfect for the assignment.

Charlie thought it was exciting and was kind of looking forward to dressing up in a tuxedo and standing around (on overtime), watching rich folks fawn over richer folks. _It wouldn't be fun, but it might be funny…. And Reese would be there...Reese in a dress_ he thought.

Right before he opened his mouth to volunteer them both, Charlie considered Reese might not like it, _hell she'd hate it, but….still…. Reese in a dress_ he thought. "Yep, sign us up, we'll do it", he offered Tidwell with a tight smile.

Tidwell was dubious and not looking forward to Dani's reaction, but he'd be home in NYC for the holidays in another 22 hours and wouldn't have to tolerate her temper for two weeks, so he took Charlie up on his offer and took another tasker off his plate.

Precisely, 39 minutes later, Charlie watched as Dani exited the Captain's office in a huff. She was beyond pissed. She didn't slam his door, but only because it was glass and it might break. Of course, Tidwell was going home to New York to visit his folks and wouldn't be here either. She ripped her chair out from under her desk and flopped down in it, pouting.

Charlie sat reclined in his, opposite her, feet up on his desk, his long frame stretched taut and his hands behind his head in what her father used to refer to as the "Marine Corps fighting position". It was supposed to be some snide joke between the services, which she never quite got and that irked her too. She was pissed at him for volunteering them, but Dani suspected it was because her usually happy go luck partner didn't like the prospect of Christmas alone and that got him a tiny bit of sympathy.

"So" Charlie chirped "you going?"

"Yes" she hissed. "I don't know what you're so fucking chipper about Crews" she said darkly. "It's going to be nine hours of lousy overtime, standing around looking like a houseplant."

Charlie took his feet down so quickly he popped forward in his chair and rolled forward, very close to his desk and whispered conspiratorially "Reese?" waiting for her to quit grumbling and look at him.

Her eyebrows said "what" but she remain mute and in dour mood.

"I was thinking…" he began. Reese rolled her eyes and waited for it, Crews was going to kill her someday with all his "thinking". Charlie just smiled - he loved her expressions – good or bad – he thought Reese had the most interesting face he'd ever seen.

"You know?… this could be fun…" he tempted in a teasing tone.

Her eyes narrowed, but he continued undeterred. "Think about it…. you and me… dressed to kill and not actually having to kill anyone. We could drink a little champagne, dance, watch over things and have something to do instead of sitting home contemplating the lives we don't have and the people we don't have them with" he offered her the way their evening could be - if she'd let it.

"Besides, I may not look it, but I'm an excellent dancer" he teased.

Reese seemed to consider his description skeptically, looking for the flaws.

Charlie knew the time was right to play his final card.

"Plus I heard the Department has to spring for the clothes….so….we can buy something really nice to wear" his tone sounded like someone contemplating something dangerously fun.

This was irresistible to someone like Dani, she loved danger and breaking rules, sticking it to the man – except that they sorta were the man – at least Charlie was. Dani was still all woman, Charlie knew. A cop, but a "pretty, pretty cop" the boy at the wedding had said. He was right.

Charlie was already imagining her in a dress, a long one, a long red, satiny one with matching gloves and her hair swept up. He was so caught up in imagining that he nearly missed her answer.

She bit her lip nervously, a habit that just made Charlie want to kiss her there, right there - on her bottom lip, gently, tenderly, just to see what it tasted like.

"I guess you have a point Crews, with the Department footing the bill, I could at least get a nice dress out of this" she considered and weighed her options.

Concluding she had no other plans and excuses, she looked up to find Charlie looking at her expectantly, like a dog waiting for the magic word "walk". She settled for a different four letter one. "Okay" she said simply and watched the grin blossom on her partner's face.

She scowled immediately at his reaction and added "but don't make a big thing out of this Crews" causing Charlie to school his features and solemnly shake his head "no, he wouldn't". But Charlie knew he was going to.

* * *

The Department wasn't springing for crap. They'd been told to wear whatever they had and business suits were fine, but Charlie decided to leave that little detail out, when he broke the bad news to Reese. He watched as she predictably pitched a fit and marched into Tidwell's office. He also left out the fact that he'd told Tidwell he and Reese would be "happy to help out". Charlie asked Tidwell to let him break the news to her, knowing she'd protest, but giving Tidwell "an out", which provided Charlie an unwitting accomplice.

The good Captain was between the proverbial devil and the deep, blue sea; he had to come up with detectives and when Crews dropped their names in the hat - it was just too easy. Now with Dani's anger assuaged by the idea of sticking it to the man, Charlie offered dinner.

"Hey, feel like tacos?" he said, far more excitedly than tacos probably merited.

Dani looked up him angrily and his smile thawed her cold anger.

"After we could get coffee?" he proffered. "From that kiosk in the park you like?"

"Sure. Why not?" Dani said grabbing her jacket. "It's not like I have plans or anything" she groused as she cast a dark look at Captain Tidwell's office. Charlie guessed the good Captain was in the doghouse, but his flight left for La Guardia the following day, so Charlie didn't really regret his little foray into politics. Not if it got him two nights alone with Dani Reese.

When she looked back, Charlie was smiling with a faraway look; her eyes narrowed sensing something was up. "What?" she inquired sternly.

Charlie shrugged "nothing" he said. "Nothing but tacos, Reese."

* * *

They ordered ten tacos, figuring between the two of them, they could put most of them out of their misery and what was left over Charlie could take home for Ted. They were leaned up against the picnic table, facing the sunset with the tray holding the tacos on the table behind them. Reese finally relaxed from her earlier agitation and was letting herself enjoying the sun's curtain call and the company of Charlie Crews.

Charlie, for once, was quiet. She cast a sideways glance at her tall partner as he tried, unsuccessfully, to eat his taco without getting it on his suit. He leaned forward balancing the crisp little yellow corn tortilla gingerly, measuring when and where to bite. There's a cardinal rule with tacos, hard shells split right down the middle on the first bite, invariably. She watched as the shell did precisely what she expected, but almost snorted cola from her nose, at the face Charlie made after losing most of the tacos contents on the pavement under him.

He glanced sideways as she hid her smile in the crook of her arm to keep from laughing at him. "Yeah, well better there than on my suit" he joked somewhat darkly.

She smirked, trying to decide whether to take pity on him and teach him how to get most of the taco in his mouth or just let him go home hungry. Charlie licked his fingers and reached back for another taco.

"Hold on" she said deciding "before you waste another one, let me show you," she offered. Charlie handed the taco to her. He watched patiently as Reese folded back the paper and handed it to him. "If you take them out of the paper, you can't hold them together" she explained.

Charlie bit gently into the taco and it predictably shattered, but the insides remained. He peered at her and grinned. "Smart girl" he said appreciatively, before returning to the little morsel in his hands.

After getting the lion's share of this taco in his mouth, Charlie wadded up the paper and tossed it at a nearby trashcan, missing by a mile. Dani laughed again.

He stood walked to the paper and dropped it in the can. He loved this side of her, the relaxed young woman who slouched on the bench sucking on the straw from her soda. Charlie pivoted to find her looking not at the sunset but at him. He inclined his head in an unspoken question and she rolled her eyes in response.

"Its not that I don't appreciate that our non-verbals are so finely honed that they allow us to communicate without speaking, but was there something you wanted to ask me Detective Reese?" he said sitting down beside her again and picking up his own soft drink.

Reese considered his question for a moment before reaching back for another taco and folding the paper back and handing it back to him before getting another for herself. "I'm wondering how is it that you don't know how to eat a taco without losing half of it on the floor?"

"Not a lot of Taco Tuesday's at Pelican Bay" he remarked wryly.

"Yeah, but…" she started and then stopped.

"But what?" he asked seriously interested. They were having a real conversation, like people, not partners, just people and it was new to them both.

"Did you forget everything you knew before you went to prison?" she finished what she wondered and bit into her taco to mask her discomfort with putting him on the spot.

_One thing about Reese, she didn't pull punches,_ he thought. He was still thinking when Reese finished her taco and grabbed a paper napkin to wipe her mouth.

"Look, Crews" she started, not quite yet finished chewing, she stopped to swallow and take a swig of her soda "it's not a hard question. Did you know how to eat tacos before you went to prison?" she finished, with a slight smile coaching him.

Charlie looked down and then out across the sunset, but did not answer right away.

"Charlie?" she said grasping his arm. _Not Crews, Charlie she'd said_ he realized. That was him, he was Charlie and he looked down at her hand on his arm and the concern apparent on her face.

"Reese? ….Are you touching me?" he repeated her words to her.

Dani dropped her hand, mildly embarrassed and looked away. After a moment, she looked back to find Charlie still staring at her and she shoved him hard. He didn't move off the bench but playfully leaned away from her, in an exaggerated motion and her smile returned.

This was them together; Charlie and Dani, not Crews and Reese, he thought. He realized they could be together outside the job and it included a lot more smiling and laughter from Dani than he was prepared for. In fact, it seemed almost as if she enjoyed his company, which was dangerous indeed.

Charlie seemed open, but he wasn't. His sunshine and Zen were merely a different sort of armor designed to keep the world at bay, to deflect difficult questions, to protect himself from connecting with something that might hurt him. But Dani he trusted, she - he would let in.

Looking down, he gave her the real answer to the real question she'd just asked him.

"After awhile..... inside, you put away all the things about your former life that made it real, to protect it, to save it from being destroyed. Then you begin to forget…a little at first, then more… eventually everything. You even forget who you were."

There was an uncomfortable silence between them before he solemnly continued.

"Sometimes I can barely remember anything about who I was before. You also forget how to act around real people - girls, children. It's weird I know." He confided quietly.

Dani was patient, thoughtful and looked off in the distance appreciating the deeply personal nature of his response for a moment. She nodded to herself and then looked at him and it was as if she was seeing him for the first time.

He was not a partner, a work mate, another Detective; he was Charlie, her friend, her confidant and maybe something else. She reached a decision inside that said Charlie Crews was a part of her life – not something she was forced to accept, but something she wanted to have.

She looked directly at him "It's not weird. Most people I meet can't answer honestly when I ask them their name. You just told me something that means something and that's…" She floundered, seeking the right word.

"Something?" he smiled and offered.

"Yes" she accepted, with her voice, eyes and heart. She never expected to enjoy the company of Charlie Crews so much. It was surprisingly simple, yet here she sat in the LA sunset a week before Christmas, eating tacos and laughing with Charlie Crews. And it was fun, maybe this party thing could be too – she considered.


	2. Chapter 2 The Dress

**The Dress…**

It was the Saturday before the event and Dani's phone was ringing.

_Christ somebody better be dead_ she thought looking at her alarm clock 0823 - it read.

She grabbed her cell, which was dancing across the nightstand, vibrating merrily, before it fell on the floor. She was really enjoying Tidwell being gone and long nights of uninterrupted sleep at her home, alone, in her bed.

She flipped the phone open and looked at the caller ID – Crews – it read. Dani groaned, as she answered "What is it Crews?"

"Morning Reese" Charlie said brightly. "What do you say we go find that dress of yours today?"

Dani squinted at the clock again. "Crews stores don't open til 10AM" she whined.

"Not the week before Christmas, they've been open since 7" he reminded. "Plus I brought coffee" he offered.

"Brought coffee where?" she said suspiciously.

"Open your door" he told her.

Dani snapped the phone shut, unwrapped herself from her warm bed and stumbled to her front door. She squinted through the peephole and sure enough - there stood Charlie Crews waggling his eyebrows and a Styrofoam cup at her. Reese opened the door and leaned on it heavily, sighing at him and holding her hand out.

Charlie smiled and handed her the cup and retrieve his own from the stoop. "You gonna invite me in? Or should I wait in the car?" he asked.

As Dani swung the door open and let him in, Charlie took in her appearance. Her brown hair was tousled from sleep; she was wearing a hockey jersey and men's boxers. The hockey jersey, far too big for her, hung to her mid thigh and showed a good portion of her collarbone and part of one shoulder. Her tanned legs were bare and looked longer because of the shortness of the jersey, resulting in Charlie sorta staring at her. He really couldn't help himself.

Suddenly Dani was aware of his look, blushed and realized her state of dress. "I'm taking a shower now" she said walking back into her house "find something on TV to watch…. And Crews…don't drink my coffee" she threatened darkly, handing her cup to him. Charlie grinned wryly, but didn't even notice a TV - until Dani sashayed down the hall and was well out of sight. He sighed and began poking around looking for a remote.

Dani Reese emerged a half hour later dressed in jeans, a white tank and a black motorcycle jacket. Charlie thought she looked good enough to eat, but tabled that thought and handed her coffee back. "Did you know there's no fruit in your house?" he questioned with a pained expression.

"Yes, Crews" she feigned exasperation "I think there's maybe an apple, in the fruit drawer, of the fridge, if you need a fix" she countered dryly.

"No. No there's not. I looked" he told her.

"I'm not in charge of your fruit habit, you junkie" she teased "I'm not enabling you either" she continued. Crews' mood was rubbing off to the point she was no longer annoyed at the hour, besides which it was approaching 0915.

"So where is it you want to go again?" she questioned, not entirely sure she heard him properly the first time "cause I thought I heard you asked me to go shopping for a dress and guys just don't do that"

"Nope, that's what I'm here for" he said, without an ounce of embarrassment.

"Okay…..this will be different" she wondered aloud.

"Reese" he spoke, holding her eyes "who better to tell you how you look in something - than me - the man you trust your life with daily right?" Charlie teased softly.

"Don't overdo it, hot shot" she warned with a smile.

* * *

As it turned out, they didn't have a problem finding A dress, they had a problem narrowing it down to just one. Charlie was partial to a vibrant red, full-length strapless, while Dani was leaning towards a dark Kelly green one, with a nice tight bodice emphasizing her cleavage.

While she mulled her choices, Charlie quietly paid for both and had them sent to her house, along with shoes dyed to match. He approached her from behind, as she examined herself in the mirror. She was talking to herself, maybe to him, but more to herself "don't want to stand out, protection is supposed to blend in, not get noticed, so I should get the green one" she murmured.

"Reese" Charlie spoke softly "there is no way you won't be noticed."

"You could wear that hockey jersey and stop traffic" he told her, making Dani blush. She considered that Charlie Crews was a man. Sometimes she forgot, she realized.

"So that's the dress, what about jewelry?" he offered.

Dani narrowed her eyes "I'm not a doll you can dress up, you know?" she said.

"I know that, but…." He trailed off.

"But what?" she questioned emerging from the dressing room in boots and black leather again. Her body posture said pissed off, but she wore a smile and was anxiously tapping her toe. Charlie knew deep down Dani could grow accustomed to being spoiled and he desperately wanted to be the one doing the spoiling.

"Uh – nothing." He concluded the jewelry could wait; he had something else in mind.

"You wanna grab some lunch?" he offered.

Dani looked at her wrist causing him to think she might have other plans.

"Unless you've got somewhere else you need to be…." he said, suddenly somewhat unsure. A woman as pretty as Dani would have no shortage of suitors he realized.

She eyed him clinically, noting the slightly jealous tint in his tone. Did Crews "like her" like her or was he just being….? What? She was still staring at him in his corduroys slacks and light sweater wondering, when he interrupted her thoughts by clearing his throat.

"No…. uh, no plans. Just wondering if you need a watch? Or if guys can just use their stomachs to keep the time?" She joked. "You're always hungry. you know?"

"It's fruit withdrawal" he deadpanned, making her smirk at him. He winked back and then offered "how about you buy me a smoothie to even out the rough spots?" Dani smiled broadly.

"Okay, come on. Let's pay for the dress and go" she conceded.

"Already done" he steered her towards the door. "They'll be delivered to your house by tomorrow" he advised.

Dani started to protest, but Charlie's finger on her lips stopped her diatribe.

"Remember I have undisclosed millions and I promised to only use my powers for good" he teased. "That way you don't have to decide now, you can think about it up to the night of the event" he sweetened the pot.

She nodded her assent and Charlie removed his finger. "I thought the department was supposed to pick up the tab?" she said cagily, strongly suspecting the Department, on the city's lean budget, wouldn't pay for one dress, let alone two.

"If it makes you feel better I'll put in a claim for reimbursement" he joked. "Come on I know this great spot down by the water with shrimp and beer."

"I know you did not just offer to buy an alcoholic, beer" she said to him with a modicum of humor behind her warning.

"No. I did not. Beer for me, shrimp for you. Also car keys for you, since I'll be drinking" he dropped the Maserati keys into her hand. Dani loved his fast little car and would not pass up the chance to drive.

"I do love this car, Charlie" she confirmed, grinning at the keys in her hand.

"I know, Reese. I know" he smiled back at her.

* * *

The big day arrived and Charlie was more than a bit nervous, as he wheeled his sleek black car to the curb at Dani's house. He felt like his collar chaffed and the bow tie wasn't quite right. He fidgeted waiting for Dani to get to the door after he rang, but nothing prepared him for her – when she opened the door. He felt like a fish when it was removed from water, his mouth moved, but no words would come.

"Crews?" she questioned "are you okay?"

Charlie continued to fiddle with his collar and nodded mutely.

"Come in here, lemme look at that tie" she directed.

Charlie complied quietly, eyes never leaving her. Dani had chosen the red dress, the one Charlie liked best, but if he thought it looked good on her inside the store; he wasn't prepared how good his partner could look all cleaned up. Her tanned skin against the red of the dress and her upswept hair left the long lines of her taut neck muscles visible, caused his heart to race and the room to become uncomfortably hot. Charlie tried hard not to stare, but failed miserably.

She was stunning and she knew it. Dani could see the effect her dress had on her partner. She was well aware he'd volunteered them for this detail and wasn't above put him through a little hell - for fun. She smiled as she retied his bow tie neatly, after she unbuttoned the top button of his shirt collar underneath it, so he could breath. Charlie sighed happily, when she finished.

"Shall we?" Dani offered. Charlie simply offered his arm, but still said nothing.

"Are you not going to talk all night?" she smiled slyly. "If I'd have known, this was how to shut you up, I'd have worn a dress a long time ago" she teased.

At the car, Charlie opened her door and then asked her "wait a minute" as he removed a large velvet box from the passenger seat. "I thought that dress might need a little something. It doesn't… you don't… you look…" he said reaching for the words.

"Anyway, you could wear this if you like" he swallowed hard and opened the box.

Before Dani lay an exquisite piece of simply wrought, platinum; an elegant choker chain, interspersed with emeralds and diamonds and a pair of tear drop shaped emerald earrings with diamond accents. She could not help the subconscious intake of air, when he opened the box, and revealed the contents.

Charlie smiled, seizing some of the initiative she's stolen from him, removed the necklace, handing her the box and motioned for her to turn around. Dani complied and he leaned close draping the necklace across her collarbone. His fingers whispered along her neck, as he fastened the clasp and turned her by her bare shoulders to face him. He kept his eyes on the necklace and his fingers stroked the chain to flatten it against her skin, straying a little, to lightly brush her collarbone.

The world around them ceased to register, as the tiny bubble that just contained the two of them, pushed out other noises and people. Charlie softly ran his hands down Dani's bare arms, making her shiver involuntarily.

"Are you cold?" he asked concerned.

"No, not cold" she replied, her eyes glistening in the streetlight. Charlie swallowed hard as her eyes stripped him bare of all the devices he threw up for protection. She saw right through him.

"I volunteered us for this" he confessed.

"I know" she said simply, as a smile crept across her face.

"Let's go, we're gonna be late" she said, breaking the spell.

* * *

As they arrived to the location, Charlie handed the keys off to the valet, Dani surprised him, saying "I've got something for you too." Charlie almost lost his footing, as he turned to look at her.

Dani dragged him into an alcove inside the lobby and handed him her pistol. "There's no place to hide this in my dress and it will easier to get to in the waistband of your pants than in some silly handbag" she explained.

"You wanna get in my pants - all you have to do is ask," he teased with a smirk, as he raised his jacket and tucked her pistol in behind his back.

Dani just smirked back at him. "You realize this means we can't be too far apart most of the evening," she warned.

"That's not going to be a problem," he promised. They were having fun with this already he reasoned, Dani's mood was worth any amount and she looked fabulous. As they walked into foyer, heads turned; women looked at the dress and the jewelry; men at her, but all eyes were on Dani.

"Told ya I should have worn the green one, I'm too noticeable" she remarked, embarrassed at all the attention.

"Next time, Dani, next time" Charlie coached, as he wrapped his arm around her, to shield her. The look, he shot the young men standing in front of him who were barely avoiding drooling, said "mine, back off", at once protective and guarding his beautiful partner from the probing eyes of the men who didn't bother to mask their admiration of her.

Crews introduced them to the event coordinator whose jaw dropped "you're cops?" he said incredulously. "Christ, there's no way she's a cop" he said gesturing at Dani, with what looked to be his third scotch in hand.

"Detective – Reese is my senior partner and a very capable police officer" Charlie warned and Dani bristled noticeably, at the man's misogynistic attitude. "Now where do you want us?" he offered.

The man inclined his head, thought better of a snappy retort and gestured at a landing with a glass window that opened onto a balcony outside. They ascended the stairs and Charlie opened the door, stepping out into the well-lit city. The day prior's rainfall cleaned some of the smog from the air and it was nice, breezy and still temperate.

"It's beautiful, Charlie" she said raising her hand to the necklace at her throat. "I forgot to thank you," she admitted quietly. Charlie smiled at her happiness.

"Why?" she inclined her head, seeking his reason for the cloak and dagger operation.

"Why what?" he asked confused.

"Why this? All this? If you wanted to ask me out, there are easier and certainly less extravagant ways to do it" she offered to his ducked head.

"I'm not… this isn't….I wasn't…." he stammered.

Knowing she had a few minutes before the work began, Dani pressed.

"No? Sorry. I guess I got it wrong" she said deliberately, turning to walk away from him.

Charlie stopped her and pulled her to him "no, no you didn't" he confessed breathlessly and he pulled her against his chest and leaned down to kiss her. His lips were soft and smooth against hers and she could smell the crisp aroma of his aftershave, as he stopped short of actually delivering the kiss. He waited for her to respond.

"Good" she teased "cause you know how I hate to be wrong" she whispered, into his curved lips, as he smiled.

Charlie's kiss was gentle and sweet, until it wasn't. Suddenly and without warning, Dani felt a change in the man holding her. He was no longer her partner, with the sunny disposition and cheerful attitude. She could sense his hunger; feel his want. His kiss became deeper and far more personal. His hands left her arms and moved to frame her face. Her arms wound around his back under his coat. Charlie drank in her breath and took it away, her lungs burned in exquisite pain, making her gasp for breath.

"Charlie" she gasped, pushing away from him. His blue eyes were the color of a very hot flame, her entire body was on fire, and all her nerves were alert and attuned to him. Again the rest of the world faded.

"What's happening?" she questioned, as the comfortable world she knew tilted.

Dani had plenty of experience, but this was a first for her. No one kissed her the way Charlie just did. Her knees were weak and all he'd done was kiss her. Charlie leaned down and raked his teeth across the muscles of her neck and shoulder. He trailed hot, wet, open-mouthed kisses up to her jaw.

"Dani" he whispered her name like a prayer. "I'm…." he stopped, interrupted, as the balcony door opened and music from the band warming up, filtered out ahead of the event coordinator. Charlie released her, stepped back and straightened his jacket.

The event coordinator stepped into their moment, breaking it like a soap bubble in the wind. He gave them a strange look, sensing he'd interrupted something, by their collective downwards glances. "Let me introduce you two to the Governor's advance team" he beckoned them inside.

As Charlie stood aside to let his partner pass, the coordinator appreciated Dani's walk and asked Charlie quietly "Hey…do you think I could get her number?"

Charlie stopped, gave the man a very dark look and said sternly "no, no you can't" before catching up to his lithe little partner and shadowing her the rest of the evening.


	3. Chapter 3 The Dance

**The Dance….**

The rest of the evening was blessedly smooth and eventless; drunken or slightly tipsy, but harmless, rich folks rubbing elbows with politicians and celebrities were fairly boring to Charlie, after tasting his partner's lips. It would have unbearable, had she not been there, no more than six feet from him, all evening.

There was an unusual amount of touching going on between Charlie and Reese, who generally frowned upon or objected to being touched, but now she stood close to him and sometimes brushed his hand with her fingertips. It was a light touch, like the flutter of eyelashes, sometimes so light Charlie thought he'd imagined it, but when he looked down at her, she'd blush or return his gaze, her dark eyes lit by a fire inside and he knew she'd done it – intentionally.

Charlie was immensely glad that she'd loosened his collar earlier, thinking he might spontaneously combust when she cast that dark knowing look his way. He excused himself and returning with champagne flutes full of a light yellow liquid bubbling with joy.

"Crews" she spoke in a low tone "I can't drink…"

"Sparkling grape juice? You can't drink sparkling grape juice?" he teased.

"Reese, it's hardly even fruit at this stage" he kidded with and nudged the glass at her. She smiled appreciatively and found herself enjoying his company yet again.

"Besides" he spoke, more to himself than her "There's no way I'm drinking tonight, I want to remember every single detail."

Charlie found himself himself having an incredibly hard time staying focused on watching the crowd of partygoers. He really wanted to simply stare at the woman beside. At least Dani seemed to have the same problem, as they frequently would link eyes and smiles would slowly appear before one or the other would shake themselves out of the reverie and return to the business of watching the crowd. Charlie thought the party might never end and although he desperately wanted the people to go away, all but one anyway, he did not want the night to end - not yet.

Blessedly around 11PM, the party was finally breaking up. All but the heartiest partygoers were draining from the ballroom of the hotel, into the lobby and the limos beyond. Dani was away using the restroom when the Governor himself approached Crews. Schwarzenegger thanked him for coming and Charlie advised the man he was Security - LAPD.

"You're kidding? The woman with you… she's police too?" Arnold asked.

"LAPD's finest" Charlie joked, knowing the other man understood his double meaning.

"Yes, well… thank you both" Arnold said, nodding to Dani, as she emerged from the ladies room hallway, seeking Crews with her eyes. "Maria and I will be leaving shortly and when we do, your job is done, but I wouldn't waste that dress" he offered.

"I don't intend to" Charlie promised the man and shook his hand.

The Governor looked across the room catching the eyes of his own dark-haired wife, in a beautiful ivory dress and pearls, getting her wrap and preparing to leave. "It would appear we both are out of our league, Mr. Crews."

"Don't I know it" Charlie winked at the man, as he caught his partner's eye and excused himself. Dani waived and Charlie told him "I'm sorry, but I have to go."

He crossed the room to her and Dani had her hands on her hips seeming annoyed with him, but still smiling "was that the Governor you were talking to? Lemme guess, he knows you too? Big fan?"

Charlie was distracted by the thought of being almost off the clock and appreciating the elegance and beauty of the woman before him. "No. What? Oh… yeah, they're leaving, so we're done here." He told her softly.

Dani looked down and seemed a tiny bit saddened their evening was ending.

"Unless you don't want it to be over yet?" he questioned softly.

She bit her lip and canted her head, questioning him without words.

"Wait here" he told her.

Charlie walked to the orchestra leader and leaned in, handing the man something, which Dani could only imagine, from the appreciative look on the man's face, was a lot of cash. Then he walked to a hotel attendant and did something similar. Most of the guests were in the lobby saying their good byes as the ballroom lights dimmed and the orchestra played a soft, sweet melody.

Charlie walked directly to Dani, stopped in front of her and asked what he'd wanted to all night "dance with me?" She blushed and took the hand he offered.

Charlie knew he was not a great dancer, but he could mange to hold her close and sway lightly to the music. "No dance classes at Pelican Bay, but I have seen that TV show" he joked lightly. Dani arched an eyebrow at him in classic Reese style.

"Don't worry, I won't attempt anything I've seen on TV" he chuckled in response to her questioning look.

They began their dance a respectable distance apart, but that distance evaporated quickly. Dani's hand slid up his chest inside in tuxedo jacket under the lapel, where his heart hammered furiously. His hand slid to the small of her back and pulled her intimately close. She focused hard, concentrating on the small, white pearl buttons on his impossibly white shirt, until Charlie's low, deep voice drew her to him, to his face and his bright, clear and smiling eyes.

"Dani? Look at me" he asked.

She raised her eyes to his and the look in them was not something she could have prepared herself for. His blue eyes danced with mirth and something else…desire. Dani knew that look, but she didn't know it from Charlie Crews. He wanted her and Dani found she felt lightheaded in his arms at the prospect of tasting his lips again.

"I want to kiss you" he told her in a still lower voice. "I want to do things to you that a man should not want to do to his partner." He confided. "I'm in real trouble here, Dani. I think I'm in... I like you more than.... way more than I should," he murmured across her lips, as he bent to kiss her gently.

Dani Reese no longer heard the music, felt the lights or sensed the room. She heard, felt, tasted and saw only Charlie. She opened to him and their sweet kiss became deeper, more personal, as insistent flights of butterflies danced across her stomach.

All pretense of dancing stopped and they were simply standing there in the middle of the massive ballroom kissing. Her hands wound around his neck, pulling him down to her. He was everything she wanted, he was hers and she was his and she knew this was the man she was meant to love.

"Charlie" she gasped when they broke.

He buried his head in her neck and nuzzled her earlobe. "I love you Dani. I may have always loved you." He confided a deep secret "I want you, but not just for tonight. I want to buy you dresses and jewelry. I want to take you beautiful places and give you everything you've ever dreamt about."

"I'm your partner" she responded incredulously and breathless.

"Then be my partner, Dani. At home, at work….be here with me" he asked.

She swallowed hard at the honesty in his clear, blue eyes. They were guileless, like the sky - on a fall morning, crisp and clear and his face was one she knew every facet of. Then the realization hit her, she loved him and she had for the longest time "I don't know how you did it, or when" she began.

"Did what?" he asked, as though his future and life didn't hang in the balance.

"I…..I'm…Charlie…." she admitted, her brow knitted in deep thought. "How did you? I'm in love you." She confessed.

He kissed her again and suddenly they both knew this was not the kind of dance they wanted to finish in public.

"Let's go home" he offered with a raised brow "and we'll finish this dance," he promised seductively.

* * *

He drove quickly through the darkened quiet streets, Dani's hand in his, clearing intersections with his red and blue wig wags and the occasional siren, which made her grin. He pulled the sleek little car into the drive in front of his house and rounded the car to let her out. Dani's shoes were already off and in her hand, as he led her into his darkened house.

Charlie asked her to wait for him with a single finger on her lips, in the large marble entranceway, while he switched on an MP3 player and queued up a Will Derryberry song, she recognized from her nano's playlist, called "When Will This Fever Break".

He then slipped off his expensive shoes and walked softly and silently to her, in just his socks.

"I'm more graceful without shoes," he promised softly, kissing her neck and turning her in his arms. Dani's eyes were soft and dark when she smiled at him.

"Are you sure?" he asked her. Dani nodded and reached for him.

"I'm sure Charlie," she told him.

They danced, but they didn't dance; they moved, without much movement. They stood stock-still and their hands linked, their eyes linked, then simply, softly their lips linked and their breath mixed. Soon they were so close and their limbs wound together so completely, they were indistinguishable from one another and that's when Charlie decided they were dancing, really dancing.

He forced himself away from her and took her by the hand, leading her upstairs to his bedroom. "See" he told her "I told you I was an excellent dancer".

Dani laughed "yes, Charlie you are" she said with her eyes full of mischief and mirth.

She felt freer and lighter with him than with anyone. He knew precisely how to put her at ease, exactly where to touch and when to release her. Charlie knew her down to her soul. She wanted that and she wanted to be that to him, for him, with him, more that she'd wanted anything in a long time.

"Do you think this will change things?" she asked him, as she removed her earrings and asked him to unzip the dress.

"I think how things are meant to be – they become" he told her plainly, removing his cufflinks and placing next to her earrings on the bureau.

"I don't know how to do this" she confessed, as she stopped and turned to face him. He took her hands in his and kissed the insides of both wrists, before releasing them.

"Don't think about it, just feel your way, Dani. Lead with your heart and you will know the way," he promised. She slid the suspenders off his shoulders as he unbuttoned and untucked his white shirt, sliding that off his shoulders with her tiny hands.

"Why do I believe you when you say things like that?" she chuckled, stepping out of her dress. Charlie took the dress and reverently laid it across the high backed chair in the room and returned to her in only a t-shirt and trousers.

"Because I speak the truth…..and because you love me" Charlie told her as he buttoned and unzipped his pants and stepped out of them. He stood before her in a pair of boxer briefs, his white t-shirt and black dress socks. She thought he might look comical if not for the look on his face, which was anything but that.

Dani, for her part, was stripped down to just her black satiny matching underwear and strapless bra, her panty hose discarded while Charlie hung up her dress. Neither of them seemed particularly hurried, although she longed to touch him again. They stood there looking at one another, until she crossed to him and lightly fingered his shirt with feathery touches of her hands. "Take this off Crews" she demanded of him.

Charlie smiled crossed his arms and pulled the t-shirt over his head, tossling his red hair and his eyes smiled back at her. "And lose the socks" she continued, while she stepped around behind him, her fingers trailed lightly of the taut muscles of his back and flanks. Charlie bent at the waist and pulled his socks off by the toes, like a little boy. She slid her arms around his torso as he straightened and hugged his back, laying her smooth cheek against his shoulder blade.

"You care to tell me why I'm not nervous about the prospect of sleeping with you" she inquired lightly.

"That's an easy one" Charlie chuckled softly and pulled her by the arm around to his front "next time ask me something hard" he said bending to kiss her. He stopped short and whispered across her lips "you aren't nervous.. because this is where you are supposed to be….and you and I both know it".

Dani's breath hitched as he pulled her tightly to him and grasped her shoulder in his right hand, placing his left behind her neck. He bent close and asked her again with mischief in his eyes "dance with me Dani?" as his lips closed over hers.

Again her world disappeared, she could no more tell you what room she was in at that moment, than what planet she was on. Charlie Crews took not only her breath away, but all conscious thought from her. She did know when something felt right, and this did - he did. He trusted her, believed in her and that was more attractive than a man who simply wanted her body, in fact to Dani it was irresistible.

Hours later, as she lay there in his arms, Charlie decided Christmas held no great promise for him as he already had everything he wanted. Dani Reese was his, she'd told him as much several times throughout the night. She sighed contentedly and snuggled closer, whispering his name in her sleep, a soft contentedly "Charlie" escaped her lips, making him impossibly happy. Whether it was eating takeout tacos, sitting across from her desk just watching her type, making love to her or dancing in a ballroom or barefoot in his house, Charlie knew there was nowhere else he wanted to be for the rest of his life.


End file.
